45th Chess Olympiad R07: India continues to shine, winning all matches
The first ceremonial move in the open section of 45th Chess Olympiad was made by Mr. László Bekefi, General Manager of Coca-Cola HBC Hungary, and Mr. Alexey Dmitrenko, Supply Chain Leader at Coca-Cola HBC Hungary. Coca-Cola, the official beverage partner, supplies the Olympiad with free soft drinks and water for players, media, and the organising team. This ceremonial move set in motion the most important match in the open section: India vs. China. The highly anticipated first board encounter between Gukesh D and Ding Liren did not happen. Although the two are set to play the world championship match in November, China allowed Ding Liren to rest for this match. Tournament commentator GM Peter Svidler had a strong opinion about this: “I don’t think you will find very many examples of the reigning World Champion not playing board 1 in an absolutely critical central match of the Chess Olympiad… If China wants to win this Olympiad, they need to win today. It is very difficult to take points off this Indian team. The fact that Ding Liren is not sitting down to play chess today after the rest day is, I think, quite significant.” The first game to finish in the match was a draw between Praggnanandhaa R and Yu Yangyi on board two. One of the intrigues of the round was whether Arjun Erigaisi, with a perfect 6/6 record so far, would continue his winning streak. Following the crazy complications in the middlegame, which were “all just forced”, as Arjun said after the game, Erigaisi, playing White, ended his winning streak by drawing with Bu Xiangzhi. It is worth noting that before going for a threefold repetition through a perpetual check, Bu thought for some 15 minutes, constantly checking on the other two games, trying to consider whether he might continue the game. “It’s only White who could, in fact, push,” commented Erigaisi. “If the situation on the other two boards was different, I might have needed to risk, but my teammates were doing fine.” As Pentala Harikrishna made a draw with Wang Yue, the game where India could hope for a win was Gukesh D vs. Wei Yi. For a long time, it looked like it would also finish in a draw. However, Black’s defending task was anything but easy. Finally, after an excruciating battle, on move 71, Black erred, and Gukesh didn’t let go of this chance. A narrow 2.5-1.5 win for India! “I thought I’ll press this forever and see what happens,” commented Gukesh after the game. “I couldn’t lose it, so there was no pressure on me.” Iran stopped the Vietnam miracle, confidently defeating them by 2.5-1.5. Three draws and Pouya Idani’s win on the last board elevated Iran to a clear second place. The team, headed by Parham Maaghsoodloo and Amin Tabatabaei, initially seeded 10th, will meet India in the next round. “They are a strong team, so we’ll just come and play some good chess!” said Gukesh. In the women’s section, the first move for Harika was made by H.E. Aref Hamad Al Awani, General Secretary of the Abu Dhabi Sports Council, and Hussein Abdullah Khoury, Chairman of the Abu Dhabi Chess Club. Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, will host the 47th Chess Olympiad in 2028. With this, the crucial match between India and Georgia started. India has had an ideal tournament so far, winning all their matches. Divya Deshmukh, on board three, had been the hero of the team with 5.5 points in 6 games. This time, she made a draw, but her teammates Vaishali R and Vantika Agrawal took the flag and raised it high, winning their games. An amazing 3-1 victory against one of the favorites, Georgia, leaves no doubt that India means serious business to improve on their bronze finish in 2022! An important match between Poland and Ukraine in the women’s section ended in a draw. After Alina Kashlinskaya, on the first board, defeated Yuliia Osmak in a nerve-wracking time trouble, things looked bright for Poland. However, Ukraine struck back with a win by Nataliya Buksa against Oliwia Kiolbasa on the third board. It means that India is now two match points ahead of the pursuers. The Chess Olympiad broke another record in Round 7. Syria was the last team to arrive and get paired in the open section. It brings the total to 188 teams, setting an absolute record for the Chess Olympiads. In 2022 in Chennai, there were 186 teams in the open section. The women’s tournament also boasts the highest participation numbers: 169 teams are taking part, compared to 159 in Chennai. Position of the day: Yuliia Osmak (Ukraine, 2471) – Alina Kashlinskaya (Poland, 2490) Black to move 28…Be4! Black is winning, but really needs to simplify and extinguish White’s kingside attack. 29.Rxe4 Nxd2 30.Rf4 Qb8, and soon (not without more tactical complications) Black set her queenside pawns in motion and won the game. 0-1 Results of the top matches: Open: (12) India 2.5-1.5 China (11)(11) Iran 2.5-1.5 Vietnam (11)(10) Uzbekistan 3-1 Ukraine (10)(10) Serbia 3-1 Netherlands (10)(10) Armenia 2.5-1.5 England (10)(10) Lithuania 1.5-2.5 Hungary (10)(10) France 2-2 Georgia (10) Women: (12) India 3-1 Georgia (11)(10) Ukraine 2-2 Poland (11)(10) Azerbaijan 1-3 Kazakhstan (10)(10) Armenia 2-2 USA (10)(10) Mongolia 2-2 Germany (10)(10) Spain 1.5-2.5 France (10) Top standings after 7 rounds: Open: 1. India – 142. Iran – 133-6. Uzbekistan, Hungary, Armenia, Serbia – 12 Women 1. India – 14 2-4. Poland, Kazakhstan, France – 12 Full results and standings: Chess-results.com – 45th Chess Olympiad Written by WGM Anna Burtasova Photos: Michal Walusza, Mark Livshitz and Maria Emelianova See more Round 7 photos on FIDE Flickr Official website: chessolympiad2024.fide.com
45th Chess Olympiad R06: India emerges as sole leader in both sections
India is going to the only rest day of the 45th Chess Olympiad as the sole leader, having won all matches in both the open and women’s sections. Both teams have been winning confidently, without experiencing tough matches so far—a strong statement on their path to the gold medals. Argentinian chess prodigy Faustino Oro, with a current rating of 2434 at just ten years old, made the first move in Round 6 for world champion Ding Liren, setting the games in motion. India continued their pursuit of gold medals, defeating Hungary 3-1. Arjun Erigaisi remains the only player with a perfect score in the open section. In Round 6, he won against Sanan Sjugirov, a recent addition to the Hungarian team. Erigaisi is gaining 13 rating points in the Olympiad, elevating him to a career-high of 2791. The second win in the match was delivered by Vidit Gujrathi, while the games on first two boards ended in draws. Incredible Vietnam halted China, tying the match 2-2. Wang Yue beat Tuan Minh Tran on the last board, but the leader of the Vietnamese team, Le Quang Liem, retaliated by defeating world champion Ding Liren. “This is the first time that after the first half of the tournament, we are among the leaders,” commented Liem on the official broadcast. “I am very happy with the result and proud of my teammates. We are playing fantastically this time. Coming into this tournament, we had no expectations. We were initially ranked #21. We have never been this close to the medals before. We will enjoy the games and see what happens.” Iran prevailed over Norway in a close match, thanks to a win on the fourth board, where Pouya Idani gained the upper hand over Frode Urkedal. Magnus Carlsen had a significant advantage in the middlegame against Parham Maghsoodloo but could only achieve a draw. Uzbekistan had a tough match against Israel, as Sindarov blundered and lost to Nabaty. However, thanks to the wins of Abdusattorov and Yakubboev, the defending champions clinched the match victory. The USA continues to struggle, with four draws against Romania despite being the favorites on every board—a result that is hardly satisfying for the team of Fabiano Caruana. After 6 rounds, India is the sole leader with 12 points, closely pursued by Vietnam, China, and Iran with 11 match points. In the women’s section, India continues to delight their fans too. A convincing victory over Armenia was secured by Divya Deshmukh, who defeated Elina Danielian. Draws on the other boards cemented the result. China, meanwhile, suffered a second consecutive loss. Poland pulled off this important victory by 2½-1½, thanks to Oliwia Kiolbasa, the heroine of the previous Olympiad, who beat Guo Qi. The other three games ended in draws. Georgia narrowly won against Mongolia, thanks to Melia Salome’s victory on the fourth board. After six rounds, India leads with 12 match points, followed by Georgia and Poland with 11. The tournament halts for a one-day break and the competition will resume on September 18 with Round 7. Position of the day: Ding Liren (China, 2736) – Le Quang Liem (Vietnam, 2741) White to move In this position, White could have held a draw with precise play after 44.Rd8. The World Champion played 44.Ra8? only to find himself lost after 44…d5! Le Quang Liem: “The main challenge for White is that it is not clear where you should put your rook – behind the pawn or on the side – and where to put your king, so it’s a bit tricky.” Peter Svidler: “The rook needs to be on d8, it turns out. It is very important to keep it on d8.” Results of the top matches: Open: (10) China 2-2 Vietnam (10)(10) Hungary 1-3 India (10)(9) Norway 1.5-2.5 Iran (9)(8) USA 2-2 Romania (8)(8) Israel 1.5-2.5 Uzbekistan (8) Women: (10) India 2.5-1.5 Armenia (10)(9) Georgia 2.5-1.5 Mongolia (10)(9) Poland 2.5-1.5 China (8)(8) Ukraine 3-1 Serbia (8)(8) Vietnam 1.5-2.5 Azerbaijan (8) Full results: Chess-results.com – 45th Chess Olympiad Written by WGM Anna Burtasova Photos: Michal Walusza, Mark Livshitz and Maria Emelianova See more Round 7 photos on FIDE Flickr Official website: chessolympiad2024.fide.com